On the north edge of Union Grove, Wisconsin, just off Highway 45, Trinity Lutheran Church has proclaimed the gospel in Racine County for more than 150 years. Founded in 1869 by ten German immigrant families from St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Oak Creek, the congregation traces its roots to the wave of Lutheran settlers who organized German-speaking parishes across the Wisconsin frontier. Today Trinity is a member of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS), subscribes without reservation to the Lutheran Book of Concord of 1580, and gathers each week for traditional liturgical worship centered on the preached Word and the Sacraments.
A Heritage Going Back to 1869
Trinity's story begins on April 19, 1869, when ten families who had been driving from the Town of Raymond into Oak Creek for worship asked the Rev. Philipp Brenner of St. John's to organize them as a separate congregation. They took the name "Die Evangelisch Lutherische Dreieinigkeits Gemeinde," the Evangelical Lutheran Trinity Congregation, and met for worship in the Hunter School in Raymond Township. The original Board of Trustees consisted of George Ferber, John Hetzel, and John Fritschen. That August the new congregation dedicated a plot of land on 51st Street south of 3-Mile Road for use as a church cemetery.
For the next two decades Trinity shared pastors with its mother church in Oak Creek. In 1889, under the pastorate of the Rev. Carl Gausewitz, Sr., the people built their first house of worship, a modest frame church on the cemetery grounds at 4550 South 51st St. It was dedicated on September 29, 1889, with a German service in the morning and an English service in the afternoon, and it served the congregation for the next ninety-one years.
In 1896 Trinity became independent of its mother church. The Rev. William Heidtke was ordained and installed as the congregation's first resident pastor in 1897. A barn was built and a parsonage completed that same year. The turn of the century brought more growth. In 1908 the voters' meeting decided to open a Lutheran elementary school; a one-room wooden schoolhouse was promptly built, and on a special Sunday in October the Rev. Professor John Ph. Koehler of the Wisconsin Synod's seminary preached the dedication sermon. The school's first decades were marked by short pastorates and steady growth, and by 1942 the congregation resolved to build a new parsonage, a project delayed by World War II building restrictions.
Around 1912, under the pastorate of the Rev. Edwin F. Grunwald, the congregation began to use English primarily in worship, rather than German. In October of that year the people purchased an 800-pound bell and hung it in the church tower, where it called worshipers for generations. A new organ was dedicated in 1913. In 1916 Trinity entered into a dual-parish relationship with Immanuel Evangelical Lutheran Church in Paris Township, Kenosha County, a partnership that lasted until Immanuel was disbanded in 1957. The longest pastorate in Trinity's history belongs to the Rev. August Lossner, who served the dual parish from July 1920 to June 1941. Under his leadership the sanctuary was enlarged with a chancel, a new altar was installed, the stained-glass window of Christ knocking at the door was erected behind the altar, and electricity was wired into the building in 1936.
After the war years and the post-war recovery, Trinity's one-room country school reopened for grades one through eight in 1948. By the mid-1950s the old wooden schoolhouse had been replaced with a block schoolhouse built as an addition to the church building. The school's tenure on the Raymond grounds ended with the congregation's later move. As the years went by, both the school and the church in Raymond began to show their age. Roads and population were shifting, and members increasingly talked about a new building in a more visible location.
On July 17, 1980, the Voters' Assembly purchased a church building just north of Union Grove on the west side of Highway 45, formerly occupied by the Bethel Baptist Church, together with the adjacent parsonage. All plans to build elsewhere were scrapped. In a memorable Sunday morning service on November 9, 1980, members carried worship items, including candelabra, missal stand, communion ware, lectern, hymnals, and Bibles, out of the Raymond church and into the new building, where the service continued. The baptismal font was taken in three parts. Pastor Stahlecker carried the crucifix. The old frame church was sold in 1983 and torn down.
Between 1995 and 1996 the new building received a much larger narthex and portico, a storage room downstairs, refurbished and accessible restrooms, a freshly painted sanctuary, upgraded wiring, new exterior lighting, an enlarged pastor's study, expanded paved parking lots, and a new steeple and bell tower. A new roof was put on the building. The original 800-pound bell, which had called worshipers in Raymond for decades, was retrieved from storage at Henderson Seed Farms, refurbished, and installed in the new tower on March 24, 1996. Custom-designed stained glass windows by the T.C. Esser Stained Glass Studios of Milwaukee had already been installed along the north and south sides of the sanctuary in 1986. On Sunday, November 17, 1996, the congregation gathered to rededicate its remodeled building, with the Prep Singers from Luther Preparatory School providing special music. A three-flagpole display honoring the American, Wisconsin, and Christian flags was dedicated on the lawn in 2002.
Worship, the Sacraments, and the Saturday-Sunday Rhythm
Trinity gathers around Word and Sacrament in the historic Lutheran pattern. Sunday worship is at 9:00 a.m. and Saturday worship at 6:00 p.m. During Lent an additional midweek service is held at 7:00 p.m. Holy Communion is celebrated on the first, third, and fifth weekends of each month. Services are livestreamed through the WELS yearbook streaming platform, making the congregation's worship available beyond the sanctuary walls.
The congregation teaches and practices the Real Presence of Christ's body and blood in the Lord's Supper, and welcomes to the altar those communicants who share Trinity's confession of faith. The pastor is glad to explain the congregation's communion practice and to walk prospective members through preparation for first communion. Private and group settings are both available for the Bible Information Class (BiC), a ten-week introduction to the teachings of Scripture and the Lutheran confessions. Adult Bible Class meets each Sunday during the school year at the same hour as Sunday School.
What Trinity Believes and Teaches
Trinity's statement of faith unfolds in twenty-four articles, each grounded in passages of Scripture. Together they summarize the historic Lutheran understanding of the Christian faith.
The first three articles set out the doctrine of God and his revelation. Trinity teaches that the only true God is the Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, one divine being in three persons. God has revealed himself in creation, in the conscience, and above all in the Bible, whose sixty-six canonical books of the Old and New Testaments are not merely the words of men about God but the very Word of God. The Bible is inerrant, even in its references to scientific, geographical, and historical matters, and its accounts of miracles are trustworthy. Trinity rejects the Apocryphal and deuterocanonical books as part of the canon.
Article 4 explains how Scripture is to be read. The congregation uses the historical-grammatical method, studying the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts in their historical context, and rejects the historical-critical method as an unwarranted way to handle the sacred writings. The Bible is Christocentric, with Jesus Christ as the central subject of both Testaments, and the clear passages shed light on the less clear ones.
Articles 5 through 8 present the doctrine of creation, the fall into sin, the person of Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. The world was created in six consecutive twenty-four-hour days; macro-evolution such as Darwinism is rejected as unbiblical and unscientific, though micro-evolution such as adaptation is acknowledged. Adam and Eve's fall into sin brought death and corruption upon all creation. Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God who became truly human through the virgin birth, lived a perfect life, died on the cross as the substitute for sinners, rose again on the third day, and ascended to the Father's right hand, where he rules over all things for the good of his Church and intercedes for his people. The Holy Spirit is a divine person, equal with the Father and the Son, who proceeds from both, converts sinners through the Means of Grace, sanctifies believers, and gives the gift of saving faith.
Articles 9 and 10 distinguish Law and Gospel, the two primary doctrines taught throughout Scripture. The Law shows us our sin and God's judgment; the Gospel is the good news that Jesus has redeemed the world. Justification is God's declaration that sinners are not guilty; it is received by grace alone through faith alone. Good works are the fruit, not the cause, of salvation.
Articles 11 through 17 explain the Means of Grace. God gives his forgiveness through the Gospel in Word and Sacrament. Holy Baptism washes away sin, gives the gift of the Holy Spirit, and makes the baptized a member of God's family; Trinity baptizes infants as well as adults. Holy Communion is the true body and blood of Christ in, with, and under the bread and wine; the Real Presence does not depend on the faith of the communicant. Holy Absolution, pronounced publicly or privately, is a powerful impartation of forgiveness. Conversion is entirely the work of the Holy Spirit through the Means of Grace. Good works follow faith as a thankful response to God's mercy.
Articles 18 through 24 cover prayer, the Last Things, predestination, the Church, the public ministry, church fellowship, and the confessions. Prayer is how God's people talk with him, and he promises to hear and answer the prayers of believers. On the Last Day Jesus will return visibly, raise all the dead, and judge mankind; believers will enter eternal life and unbelievers eternal damnation. Trinity rejects every form of millennialism. Election to salvation rests entirely in God's grace; the congregation rejects any teaching that God predestines anyone to damnation. The Christian Church is founded on Christ and his Word and is found wherever God's Word and Sacraments are in use. The public ministry is God's appointed means of administering the Means of Grace, and the pastoral office is reserved for men. Church fellowship is to be practiced only on the basis of a common confession of the truth; the congregation rejects "unionism" of doctrinal error with truth. Trinity accepts the three ecumenical creeds (Apostles', Nicene, Athanasian) and the Lutheran Confessions contained in the Book of Concord of 1580, to which every pastor and teacher in the Wisconsin Synod subscribes not "insofar as" but "because" these confessions correctly proclaim Scripture.
Children, Youth, and Family Ministries
Children are an integral part of Trinity's life. Sunday School meets from 10:15 to 11:15 a.m. every Sunday during the school year for children in preschool through sixth grade. Preschoolers are welcome once they are potty trained and able to sit in class for an hour. Teachers use the WELS ChristLight curriculum to walk children through the Bible's history and central stories.
The Cherubs and Junior Choir practices for fifteen minutes during the Sunday School hour throughout the school year. The children bring their songs to the Sunday services and lead the music for the Christmas Eve children's service. Adults gather for Bible Class in the same hour.
Seventh and eighth graders enter a two-year course of catechetical instruction in Luther's Small Catechism, with opportunities for personal devotion and service projects in the congregation. Upon completion they are eligible for confirmation in the Christian faith.
All students in grades 7 through 12 belong to Trinity Teens. The teens gather for their own weekly Bible class during Sunday School throughout the school year, and the group's ministry includes worship, education, fellowship, and service. Rally Day in early autumn marks the resumption of Sunday School and adult Bible class for the program year, with an outdoor service (weather permitting) followed by a picnic lunch. The Mission Festival each fall welcomes a guest preacher and ministry presentation from a WELS-affiliated mission organization.
Each summer Trinity hosts Vacation Bible School, an evening week of crafts, songs, and Bible lessons for children ages 4 through 12. Optional dinners are served before each evening's activities, and a water-slide afternoon traditionally caps the program. Family Movie Nights bring the congregation together in the fellowship hall for pizza, salad, fruit, cookies, popcorn, and a family-friendly film.
Organizations and Fellowship
A number of lay-led groups support the congregation's life and outreach. The Church Council, appointed by the congregation, assists the pastor in spiritual guidance and oversees practical matters such as property, finances, and benevolence offerings.
The women of the congregation meet as Women of WELS on the second Monday of each month between Labor Day and Memorial Day. Formerly known as the Ladies Aid, they prepare congregational meals and funeral lunches, send "Sunshine" greetings to the sick and shut-ins, share Bible devotions, assist with special projects around the church, and sponsor Trinity's membership in the Lutheran Women's Missionary Society.
The Altar Guild takes care of chancel furnishings, changes banners and paraments, sets up Holy Communion, and assists with other special projects around the church.
Fellowship and Outreach is the volunteer group that plans community events and church fellowship gatherings, including babysitting nights, the church picnic, Fourth of July parade participation, and family movie nights.
The Building on the North Edge of Union Grove
The building that houses Trinity today is a converted former Baptist church, purchased and remodeled by the congregation in 1980. The members did much of the work themselves, moving walls, removing a baptismal immersion tank, pouring sidewalks, and laying carpeting. The 1995 to 1996 remodeling project added a larger narthex, a portico, a downstairs storage room, accessible restrooms, and a pastor's study; graded, expanded, and paved both parking lots; upgraded the electrical wiring; installed new exterior lighting; and replaced the cupola and spire with a steeple and bell tower. A new roof was put on the building, and the sanctuary was given a fresh coat of paint.
A custom-designed cross, modeled after the Wisconsin Synod's logo cross, was designed by Pastor Peters and manufactured by a member of St. John's Lutheran Church in Burlington. The Trinity Teens donated a four-foot Wisconsin Synod seal for the narthex, and the Women of WELS (then the Ladies Aid) donated a new cross for the front of the church.
The 1986 stained glass windows from the T.C. Esser Stained Glass Studios of Milwaukee line the north and south walls of the sanctuary. The 1928 stained-glass window of Christ knocking at the door, originally installed behind the altar at the Raymond church, was preserved when the congregation moved and remains a centerpiece of the chancel. A Rogers electronic organ was dedicated in 1978.
Music at Trinity is led by the Minister of Music, who directs the choirs, plays the organ for services, and works with the pastor in planning and leading worship. The 800-pound bell that first called the congregation to worship in 1912 now rings again from the new bell tower in Union Grove.
Pastor Justin A. Pomije
Trinity's current pastor is the Rev. Justin A. Pomije, who accepted the divine call to the congregation in June 2021. He is a 2016 graduate of Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary in Mequon, Wisconsin. Before coming to Union Grove, he served Hope Lutheran Church in Indian River, Michigan, and Our Savior Lutheran Church in Gaylord, Michigan. In 2015, during his seminary training, he completed his vicar year at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Salem, Oregon, where he met his wife, Kari. They were married in November 2016, and God has since blessed them with two children, Michael and Eliana. Pastor Pomije is assisted by a board of lay leaders including a president, vice president and head elder, recording and financial secretaries, a maintenance chairman, an outreach and fellowship chairman, and three trustees.
WELS and Sister Ministries
Trinity has been a member of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod since its founding in 1869. The WELS is a confessional Lutheran body of nearly 360,000 men, women, and children in nearly 1,300 congregations across the United States and abroad, united by a common faith in Christ's saving love.
For many years Trinity informally supported the ministry of full-time Christian education at Shoreland Lutheran High School in Somers, Wisconsin. In 1999 the Voters' Assembly voted to apply for formal membership in the Shoreland Lutheran High School Federation, making Shoreland a part of Trinity's ministry. The congregation also points families to Trinity Lutheran School in Caledonia and to St. John's Lutheran School in Burlington for elementary education.
The congregation belongs to the Shoreland Conference (formerly the Southern Conference) of the Southeastern Wisconsin District of the WELS, in the Western Circuit alongside congregations in Bristol, Burlington, Elkhorn, Wilmot, Lake Geneva, Slades Corners, and Antioch, Illinois.
The congregation's resource page also points members and visitors to a network of WELS-aligned ministries: WhatAboutJesus.com, which addresses common questions about Christianity; Christian Aid and Relief, which responds to disasters and hardships; the Lutheran Science Institute, a fellowship of PhD scientists, engineers, teachers, pastors, and laypeople who share how God's Word and God's world agree; and Christian Family Solutions, which provides Christian counseling and senior services.
Giving to support Trinity's ministry is available online through Tithe.ly, and the congregation keeps in touch through Facebook, a YouTube channel, and a monthly newsletter.
Faithfulness for Another Generation
For more than a century and a half, Trinity has gathered central Racine County around the preached Word and the Sacraments, in the conviction that the Triune God has kept his promises to every generation. The 1980 move from Raymond to Union Grove, the remodel of the mid-1990s, the raising of the steeple, the retrieval of the old bell, and the steady rhythm of Sunday School, catechism, and communion have all served the same purpose: to bring the gospel of Jesus Christ to the people of this corner of Wisconsin, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.